Clemson to look at adding Oklahoma St. back to schedule

CLEMSON – In the wake of this week’s announcement that the Atlantic Coast Conference will keep the current eight-game conference scheduling format, Clemson will not only re-open talks with Oklahoma St., but is forced to now find opponents for both 2013 and 2014.

The ACC expanded by two teams last year, and the league’s athletic directors voted to move to a nine-game conference schedule, causing Clemson to drop scheduled home-and-home series against both Oklahoma St. (2019-2020) and Ole Miss (2015-2016).

However, the ACC added Notre Dame to the conference a few weeks ago, and while the Irish will only be a part-time member of the conference in football, they will still play five games per season against ACC opponents. As a result, the league announced this week that the current eight-game conference format will stand.

In the interim, however, Ole Miss replaced Clemson with Memphis, and Clemson dropped games against mid-major Kent St. (2013) and Central Michigan (2014).

Associate Athletic Director Kyle Young told TigerNet Thursday that Clemson will work to see if the series against Oklahoma St. can be reinstated, as well as look at other BCS-level and elite opponents, much like Clemson’s recently completed three-game series with Auburn, and the chance to maybe once again play in the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Classic.

“We are going to definitely look at it and touch base with Oklahoma St. and see about reinstituting that game,” Young said. “Of course, we are looking at a series that is way down the line still. That game is 2019 and 2020, so I would assume that it is still there and a possibility. Hopefully, this allows us the opportunity to go out and talk with them. It also allows us the opportunity to talk with schools that our fans would be excited to see and then turn around and go see them at their places. Those are things we are working on this week as we consider the future.”

Young still has to complete the 2013 and 2014 schedules, however.

“My immediate goal is locking down 2013 and 2014,” he said. “The 2013 game has the potential to be less than a year away, depending on when the game is played. We have to get those games taken care of before we start looking too far down the line. We did have a complete schedule – we had eight game conference games and four non-conference games, and then when the conference went to nine games, we knew we couldn't play 13 and had to get rid of one of them. Then we went from nine back to eight and we are back to 11 for those two seasons.”

Clemson had added an ACC school to the schedule for 2013, and if an opponent isn't found, that may still be in play. However, Young said he would like to schedule a mid-major.

“We have a lot of opportunity to schedule some games now, where we had none,” he said. “It’s possible we pick up a mid-major like we usually do. We are going to look there first.”